Nebraska Offers Pandemic Guidance To Farmers Markets, Garden Centers
Gov. Ricketts says state relies on Southeast District Health Department on deployment of testing capacity for food processing plant at Nebraska City
By News Channel NebraskaLINCOLN – Nebraska Agriculture Director Steve Wellman offered some guidelines for farmers markets and garden centers at Gov. Ricketts daily pandemic new conference Thursday.
Wellman said it planting time for farmers and Arbor Day observers, but said social distancing directives still apply.
Wellman: “Basically our guidance is as follows. Follow the steps that we’ve had in place. Follow the suggestions from Gov. Ricketts for social distancing. But we also will add to that a little bit.
“These nurseries and garden centers need to follow those directed health measures as they set up. In addition to that we would suggest that they expand their footprint. They give more space for people, the customers, to move around. Maybe they put some tape down. They help direct traffic, similar to what we’ve done in the grocery stores and other stores. Just allow shopping to take place, purchases to take place,but allow for social distancing and work to crush the curve.”
Wellman said farmers market are also directed not to hand out food samples and provide sanitizers in areas where customers are. Customers are also given direction.
Wellman: “Let’s not forget to remind the consumers and the customers to take precautions to protect themselves, whether it be masks or gloves. You know, only pick up the products you are going to purchase and, if it’s at a farmers markets, the vendors should be the ones handling those goods and they should have gloves on at all times when they package the goods up for the consumers.”
A detasseling task force has been formed to help protect the 7,000 workers who do the seasonal detasseling work.
Gov. Ricketts also took a question regarding protecting operations at meat processing plants in Schuyler and Nebraska City.
Ricketts: “This is the whole key for everything we’re doing is about hospitalization rates and making sure we keep those hospital facilities open. That is what we saw in Grand Island is we did the testing. We saw the high rates of people testing positive, we saw that in Lexington. That was kind of our early warning sign.
“We mobilized resources to be able to work with the hospital systems and they are all working very, very hard and doing a great job. For example, to transfer patients out and make sure there was room available in those hospitals. That’s one of the things. We certainly will do testing where needed.
In regard to Nebraska City and Schuyler, I don’t have the specific information to when they are going to be tested, but you can imagine that we will be staying in touch with the local public health departments about their facilities. When they see something happening they will let us know so we can deploy resources.”
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